Nightmare
by Daughter of Christ 4ever
Summary: The five times Edmund had a nightmare, and didn't tell anyone what it was about and the one time he did.


The five times Edmund had a nightmare, and didn't tell someone what it was about and the one time he did

 **Author's Note: I do not own the Avengers or Narnia! Please enjoy! Italics are thoughts and Old Narnian. Oh, the Avengers are the five, and the resident Trickster is the one.**

Steve

The first time Steve had found Edmund on the roof, he was worried. JARVIS had had told him that he was on the roof, and Steve took off running. When he finally reached the roof, Steve scanned the ledge, and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the boy wasn't going to commit suicide like he had thought. Just then, Steve heard a whimper, and followed the sound. Once he reached Edmund, he saw that Edmund was thrashing in his sleep, crying out in a language Steve had never heard.

" _No! Please, don't hurt them!_ " the boy cried out as Steve moved closer. Gently, the super-soldier knelt down, and shook the boy's shoulder. His eyes snapped open, and Steve whispered, "It's okay, Edmund. You're safe."

But, Edmund still looked terrified, so Steve asked softly, "Do you want me to get Loki?"

However, the boy shook his head, and whispered, "I… I'll be fine Captain."

Steve didn't want to push Edmund, but the look in his eyes told Steve that something was wrong.

"Why are you out here?"

A brief pause, and then Lion admitted, "I… I thought that the nightmare would stop if I slept outside… but… I was wrong."

"Hey, you want to talk about it?" Steve asked quietly, but Edmund sighed, and whispered, "I'm fine now, Captain. And, thank you, but no."

Thor

Thor didn't know what to make of Edmund Pevensie. But Loki seemed to like the young human, so Thor tried to keep an open mind about him, even though he looked so small and weak. Glancing over at him, the Asgardian saw that the young man in question was yawning behind his hand. As he stood, the boy muttered, "I'm going to bed. Good night, everyone."

Several hours later, Thor was passing Edmund's room, but paused when he heard a soft cry.

" _I'm sorry. I'm so sorry,_ " the unmistakable voice of Edmund whispered in the language Loki sometimes slipped into, and Thor froze. _What are the odds that this boy and Loki know the same language?_ He thought, and entered the room.

" _No, please. Don't go!_ " the cries pierced Thor's heart, Loki had sometimes cried out in his sleep as a boy, and Edmund's voice was full of pain, just like Loki's had been.

"Young one," Thor rumbled quietly, "it is a dream."

" _Pete, please! I'm your brother!_ "

"Young one," Thor repeated, slightly louder, "it is a dream."

Slowly, Edmund's eyes opened, and when he saw Thor, he stiffened _._

"Thor," he managed, "why are you here?"

"You were having a nightmare, young one," Thor responded, and the boy's eyes darkened slightly.

"I'm fine," he said briskly, and Thor was silent for a minute, and then sighed, "If you ever want to talk about it, young warrior, you know where to find me."

"Thank you for the offer, but no thank you," Edmund replied.

Natasha

She had heard from Steve and Thor that Edmund was having nightmares, and that he refused to talk about what his nightmares involved. Both men, did however, say that the young man cried out in some odd language, one that Steve had never heard before, but Thor knew of through Loki.

So, when Edmund fell asleep on her lap, and started whimpering in an odd language, Natasha's motherly instincts took over, and she began stroking his hair. It was just the two of them in the Tower (the others were elsewhere, but Edmund had been sick, and Natasha volunteered to stay with him), so Natasha knew she had to help him.

"Lion," she said softly, only to feel her heart break at the clear panic in his voice. She may not have understood what he was saying, but she knew Edmund well enough to know when he was panicking.

" _Lucy! No! Please, I never meant for this to happen!_ "

"Edmund, come on, wake up," Natasha whispered, only to hear the boy cry out again in that odd language. As she continued to stroke his hair, Natasha whispered, "Lion, it's time to get up."

Smiling as Edmund's eyes cracked open, Natasha stroked his hair one more time, and asked, "What were you dreaming about?"

"Nightmares," Lion's face was closed off, which Natasha wasn't used to from him.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"No." Lion replied, his voice indicating that the conversation was over.

Tony

Tony was curious as to what Edmund was dreaming about. So far, Natasha, Steve, and Thor had all said the same thing: whenever he was having a nightmare, Edmund would cry out in some strange language, one that none (with the exception of Thor) of them had heard.

So, when Edmund fell asleep on the roof when it was just the two men, Tony wondered what he would say. _Not that I can understand the kid, anyways._

Then, Tony heard it: a sound that Tony could only describe as a tortured scream from the sleeping boy.

" _No. No. NO! Please, leave them alone!_ "

"Hey, kid!" Tony cried as he moved over to Edmund.

" _I'm sorry, I'm so sorry_ ," the boy sobbed, " _Susan, I'm so sorry._ "

Whatever he was dreaming about had to be bad, Tony knew. So, he began actively trying to wake the kid up.

" _I never meant for this to happen,_ " Edmund whimpered, and Tony sighed, before gently shaking Edmund, breathing, "Come on, kid. Wake up."

Finally, his eyes opened, and Tony questioned, "You okay, kid?"

"Y… Yeah," he stammered, and Tony's eyes softened.

"Kid, I know a thing or two about nightmares. Do you want to talk about it?"

Edmund shook his head, and Tony, while he would normally pry, chose to drop the subject, moving on to something else.

Clint

Clint was curious about what the second-youngest Avenger could be dreaming about. Tony, Steve, Thor, and Natasha had all had experiences with the young man's nightmares, but he was stubborn. Not only was he talking in some unknown language, the kid also refused to talk about **what** he dreamed about.

Clint watched as his teammates all left the roof.

"Hey, kid," he called to Edmund, who glanced over from where he sat.

"You gonna go in?"

"Hmm… no, I don't think so."

"Mind if I stay here with you?"

"No."

The two settled into a comfortable silence, and soon, Edmund was asleep. Clint was almost asleep himself when a scream tore from the sleeping boy's throat. Clint shot to his feet, and was at the boy's side in an instant.

" _Lucy… Please. I didn't want this… I'm so sorry…_ " the boy whimpered. " _I didn't think She would turn you to stone!_ "

"Kid! Come on, kid. It's just a dream!" Clint cried, reaching out a hand to touch Edmund's shoulder. Edmund whimpered, and Clint touched Edmund's shoulder. Instantly, the kid's eyes snapped open, and Clint sprang back in shock. Edmund's eyes looked… like a warrior's, something Clint was sure his eyes shouldn't look like. _But, then again,_ Clint mused, _he_ _was_ _in World War Two…_

"Kid, it's okay," Clint soothed, "you're not in the war."

Slowly, Edmund's eyes returned to normal, and Clint relaxed.

"Sorry about that," the boy murmured.

"It's okay, kid. Wanna talk about it?"

A small smile came to Edmund's lips, and he said, "Everyone keeps asking that. No, thank you."

Bruce

Bruce was working in the lab, occasionally glancing at Edmund as he slept. The young man had come in to talk to Tony about something, but upon seeing that the inventor wasn't there, had just sighed, and settled down in a chair. He eventually fell asleep, and Bruce placed a blanket over the teen, smiling at him softly.

A cry tore Bruce away from his thoughts, and the scientist whirled around to stare at Edmund, who was thrashing in his sleep, and instantly moved over.

" _Please, stop!_ " Edmund cried, " _please!_ "

Obviously, someone replied in his nightmare, and Edmund cried, " _Just hurt me! Don't hurt them!_ "

Bruce knew that something had to be done, so he began to try to wake Edmund up. Finally, he blinked awake, and whispered, "Sorry. But, I don't want to talk about it, Dr. Banner."

Apparently, the others had asked if he wanted to talk about his nightmares. Bruce sighed, and said, "Edmund, I wasn't going to ask if you wanted to talk about it, but I'll let you decide if you want to eventually tell one of us."

Edmund smiled, that he could deal with.

Loki

Loki knew Edmund was having nightmares. He also knew that the Avengers had asked if he wanted to talk about them, but he knew the Just King too well. _He'll tell someone when he wants to_ , Loki decided, and studied the sleeping king. Suddenly, Edmund let out a cry, a pained one, in Old Narnian, which apparently he slipped into when he dreamed.

" _Aslan? I'm sorry! I never meant-_ " Edmund's voice was cut off by dream-Aslan's reply, Loki assumed, and the Just cried, " _I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!_ "

Loki's eyes widened; he had a good idea of what Edmund's dreams consisted of, and if She was involved… it explained exactly **why** Edmund didn't want to tell the other Avengers.

"Aslan," Loki breathed, his breath catching in his throat. After Narnia, he'd had nightmares about the White Witch for months.

"Edmund, it's not real. Aslan _forgave_ you." Loki whispered as he moved over to the sleeping teen.

Edmund stirred slightly, and Loki whispered, "He forgave you, your majesty. He _forgave_ you!"

As soon as the last word left the Silvertounge's mouth, brown eyes were meeting his own emerald ones.

"Kenward," the king murmured softly, "thank you."

Loki was silent for a minute, and Edmund continued, "I… I kept seeing _Her_. S… she tortured them, a…and… I was forced to watch as she turned them… to stone. A… and… then She'd… She'd leave the statues in m… my cell."

After a pause, Edmund curled in on himself, and whispered, "But the worst one was w… where Aslan showed up. He… he told me t… that I was… too tainted by _Her_ …"

"Oh, Edmund…" Loki breathed, and pulled the young man into a hug. Edmund stiffened for a minute, but slowly relaxed, and eventually closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep again.

"Aslan, guard his sleep," Loki whispered, and closed his own eyes.


End file.
